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Toronto cross-country skiing ace reaching new heights

It’s hard to decide what makes Len Valjas more of a curiosity as a fast-rising cross country skier: The fact he’s from Toronto or that he’s 6-foot-6.

Just consider the battle he had to wage to find proper training in this city — it’s something from the annals of the Roadrunner and Wile E. Coyote.

Toronto's Len Valjas, competing in New Zealand in August, is enjoying a breakthrough season on the World Cup circuit. (Hannah Johnston / GETTY IMAGES)

The then 16-year-old Valjas would show up wearing a headlamp at the local downhill ski centre after it was closed.

“It’s pitch black and it’s just you and the groomer,” said Valjas. “We had these little battles going on. The groomer would groom the run perfectly and I would race up it and put these big ruts up the main run. And he would be coming down the other run and see the ruts and fill them in again. He knew someone else was there but he never saw me.”

Not your usual training regimen for a future World Cup cross-country ski racer, but that determination is starting to pay big dividends for Valjas.

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On a Canadian men’s team that already has two stars in Alex Harvey and Devon Kershaw, Valjas is showing this season he, too, may be ready for prime time.

At a recent race in Kuusamo, Finland, the 23-year-old had a huge breakthrough in reaching his first final in a World Cup sprint race and finishing fifth. This came on the heels of his best finish (18th) in a distance race just two weeks earlier in Sweden.

“I was not expecting that for a couple of years,” said Valjas. “I wrote it down as a goal, but realistically I didn’t think I could make it there for a while.”

Harvey, who last year teamed with Kershaw to win gold in the world championship team sprint, is among those impressed. The two have trained together under Louis Bouchard for the past three years in Quebec, where Valjas billets with Harvey’s mom.

“For how tall he is, it’s impressive the speed he can move his body,” said Harvey. “He’s a really talented guy, a wicked sprinter, a great training partner, super speedy. He’s a good guy to have around.”

There’s only one skier on the circuit who can look down on Valjas — that’s Swede Jesper Modin, who’s an inch taller. Valjas believes the fact he’s well-coordinated makes his height a distinct advantage on most terrains.

“Sometimes on the short and steep climbs, it’s hard to get our big bodies up the hill,” said Valjas. “Cross-country skiing is a pretty unique sport where you can have guys 6-6 and another guy on the start line 5-5. Both body types can win a World Cup.”

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Valjas comes by his athletic talent honestly. His parents, Peter and Marianne, met when they were varsity volleyball players at the University of Toronto. His older sister Kristina is on the national beach volleyball team and younger brother Austin is a provincial mountain bike champion.

The kids were all on the ski trails before they could walk — in knapsacks on their parents’ backs. The family has a chalet near Barrie and did their cross-country skiing at Hardwood Hills.

Among Valjas’s best qualities as an athlete is his remarkable composure.

“He’s just so calm before races,” said mother Marianne. “Our hearts are pounding. I can hardly hold the camera in my hands. He’s just a level-headed personality.”

He’s also immensely well-liked among his teammates, a charming and disarming guy who has impressed Kershaw with his ability to cadge bargains when they’re on the road.

“He gets like the best deals all the time,” said Kershaw. “I think it’s because he’s so tall and people are already scared of him, but he’s so nice when he opens his mouth that people are giving him discounts all over the place.”

Valjas is also a guy who takes pride in his roots, whether it be his largely Estonian heritage or his hometown.

“I’m super proud to be a Leafs fan and coming from the big city,” he said. “It’s unique. Most skiers are from smaller towns where skiing is super accessible and that’s how they got into it. I honestly didn’t think I could make it to this level, but I just kept setting these short-term goals and reaching them. I’m super excited.”

His allegiance to the Leafs might be the one part of his character that his teammates find disagreeable.

“Most of those guys are Montreal Canadiens fans. They’re always poking fun. I don’t know why they always want to pick on the Leaf fans. Probably because they’re jealous.”

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